Steamed sweet potato and pork belly

Prep time: 30 minutes Cook time: 2 hours

Serves 6

This recipe is of Hakka origin. The Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup; my dad is also of Hakka origin. The dish is made originally with taro, an ancient root vegetable, but you can use sweet potato instead. If you are short on time, the pork belly can be sliced into pieces thinner than 5mm and it will cook more quickly. This is a great dish that can be frozen if you have any leftovers.

INGREDIENTS

– 1 large sweet potato or taro (approximately 400g) – vegetable oil, for

frying

– 500g pork belly

– 1 tbsp dark soy sauce

For the sauce

– 1 tbsp vegetable oil – 25g finely sliced spring onion (white and green parts separated; green parts reserved as a garnish) – 10g fresh ginger root, peeled and finely chopped

– 1½ large garlic cloves,

finely chopped

– 2 cubes red fermented bean curd (available online), mashed with 1 tbsp of liquid from the jar

– 2 tbsp light soy sauce – 1 tbsp oyster sauce

– 2 tbsp brown sugar

– 1 tbsp hoisin sauce

– 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine – 1 tsp sesame oil

– ¼ tsp white pepper

– 1 tsp five-spice powder – 1 tsp chicken stock

powder

– 1-2 tbsp cornflour paste (cornflour mixed to a paste with water in a ratio of 1:2)

METHOD

Peel the sweet potato or taro, chop into half-moons about 5mm thick and shallow-fry in some vegetable oil until golden brown.

Put enough water in a saucepan to submerge the pork belly and boil for 10 minutes, skinside down, then for a further 10 minutes, meat-side down. Pat dry with some paper towels.

Heat 4 tbsp of vegetable oil in a wok or large frying pan, fry the pork belly skin-side down until browned (be careful as it will spit) and then flip and brown the underside.

Immediately place the pork belly in a bowl of cold tap water. The process of plunging the pork belly into cold water gives the meat a slightly chewy but yummy texture and makes it easier to cut. Lift out and pat dry with paper towels.

Brush the underside of the pork belly with the dark soy sauce, then cut on a chopping board into strips about 5mm thick and 5cm long.

Arrange the pork belly pieces in a layer on the bottom of a heatproof dish that will fit a steamer, then add a layer of sweet potato or taro.

Keep layering the pork and sweet potato/taro until they are used up.

Heat 1 tbsp of vegetable oil in a saucepan and fry off the white parts of the spring onion with the ginger and garlic for about 1 minute, until fragrant.

Then add the rest of the sauce ingredients except for the cornflour paste, plus 250ml of water, and allow to simmer for a couple of minutes until bubbling.

Pour the sauce all over the meat and sweet potato/taro in the dish, then wrap tightly with tin foil and pop in a steamer for about 1 hour 15 minutes.

Remove the tin foil (be careful as it will be hot), then use a plate to hold the meat and sweet potato/taro in the dish as you drain the sauce back into its pan – it will be very watery.

Taste the sauce and season accordingly. Now, firmly press a large plate against the dish containing the pork belly and sweet potato/taro, and flip so everything is out of the dish (it should hold its shape).

Bring the sauce in the pan to a boil, adding 1-2 tbsp of cornflour paste to thicken, then pour all over the pork.

Garnish with the green tops from the spring onions before serving.